Trawler vs. Houseboat

I am baffled. I can't thing of one good thing to say about that boat. Cartoonists should not design boats!!!

But cartoon boats are cute.* Love the fore-and-aft sailing rig.* Reminds me of mine.


-- Edited by markpierce on Saturday 3rd of September 2011 09:49:45 PM

Carey...For sure, it is a cartoon boat. The testimony to it is that he started with a very good hull to begin with, and apparently went everywhere with it. True,...it's no boat for the PNW, but come down here in the Keys of Florida and you'll have an all new appreciation for it. Unlike most of what I've seen people living in down there, this could actually make it through some pretty tough weather, and if there was a big one coming and you couldn't make enough speed on the water, you throw it on the trailer. I love character boats. I've got one.

The Manatees may fall into the character boat category, but not the cartoon category. They were clearly designed by a professional with a good eye.

The referenced cartoon boat actually is not a well executed cartoon design. As to the hull, it looks like a very nice lobster boat hull, and who can argue with that!!!

*

This is not a character boat. A "character boat" has...., well....., character. This boat is appropriately named. Absolutely no thought has been given to looks. The only function this serves is to put as much stuff as possible in as small a place as possible. It looks top heavy so I will assume it is, not to mention the big boxy shape will be a windage problem.*To sum it up, this boat is butt ugly and would be*hard to give away, none the less sell, but for the right price everything*will eventually sell. *




-- Edited by Tony B on Sunday 4th of September 2011 08:34:32 PM

I owned a 1984 Gibson 50' houseboat for 22 years.* I used it to cruise the inland waterways.* I made a "mini-loop" from Pickwick Lake on the Tennessee River north to the Cumberland River then to the Ohio River then over to the Mississippi River to Memphis.* From there south to New Orleans then on to Mobile, AL.* From there north on the Tom Bigbee to Pickwick Lake which is at the confluence of the Tom* Bigbee and the Tennessee River.* The trip was approximately 2,000 miles.* This is a perfect use of the housenoat.* It is a boat for protected waters.* The Gibson has two 125 gallon tanks.* If you cruise at about 8 MPH the boat will get about 1.5 MPG.* The engines are gasoline.* On the Mississippi River, I found it necessary to carry supplemental fuel tanks on the deck.* I stored an additional 170 gallons in drums.* My boat had radar, which really came in handy on the Mississippi River.

I bought a 49' DeFever CPMY in May 2011.* My purpose for changing is that I want to do some off shore cruising to places like the Bahamas and Carribbean. It is not possible to do that in a houseboat.

Characteristically the houseboat is much more stable than the trawlers.* This results from the houseboat's typical flat bottom.* The 50' Gibson only draws 3 foot 6 inches so it can navigate in fairly shallow water, whereas my DeFever draws 5 feet.*

So, it all depends on what type cruising you wish to do.* If I were going to limit myself to the inland waters, I would have kept my houseboat.

*

Chuck Hanson

Tony B wrote:
*
A trawler is still my first choice and there were a few diesle houseboats on yachtworld.com.

Click to expand...

*Have you looked at the carri craft boats. Catamarans built by Cris craft.

A*few on Yachtworld. They have a sort of a cult following.

SD

Chuck

I am still looking for a trawler but now am also seriously considering a houseboat, thanks to you. The admiral was concerned about a houseboat not being up to the task, but since you mentioned New Orleans to Mobile Bay, she is a little more receptive to the idea. We have sailed from N.O. to Mobile Bay many times and it can get real rough quickly. As long as we watch the weather, I will now feel more confident. I noticed that there are also some diesel powered HB's on yachtworld that I have been looking at.

As for your gas engines, I guess you can run them steady all day long every day just like a car engine?

How did you carry the drums on your deck? Lashed together? Drum Rack?
Also, how did you fill your tanks from the drums? Hand Pumps?

Thanks in advance.


Skipperdude

I just looked them up on yachtworld.com and they are way out of my budget. Only one that is really really cheap and I get the impression that this a close to a total rebuild which is what I dont want at my age. Thanks for the info. Really wish I could afford one.

Thanks
Tony B

TONY,

Very early in*this thread Boatel houseboats were mentioned.* They are made in Mora Mn.* That is about midway between Minneapolis and Duluth.* Not surprisingly they are fairly common here in Iowa on the Mississippi.* Here are a couple that call the same marina my boat is in home.* Styling is a personal thing, but they are certainly unique.

When we made the trip from New Orleans to Mobile we waited for about a month*until we had three days forcast of less than 2' seas.* We made the trip in two days.* The frist was to Biloxi.* The seas were flat until the last two hours.* We then were in following seas with three feet waves.* I would not want to cruise in any more severe conditions.* About every third or fourth wave would wash over the deck.* The second day was perfect flat all day.*

I recommend the Gibson highly for the inland waters.* I don't recommend it for any extended coastal cruising.* The problem is that the waves can get up in short order and give real problems.

The engines in most Gibsons are Crusaiders.* These are real work horses.* You can run them 10 to 12 hours a day without problems.*

*

Good luck on your quest for a new boat.

*

Chuck Hanson

This is a real trawler / houseboat combined. *So much for your twin engines, bow thrusters and autopilots. *Radar, electronics?? *Who needs it, just takes a little skill to handle this baby!!

Edelweiss wrote:
This is a real trawler / houseboat combined. *So much for your twin engines, bow thrusters and autopilots. *Radar, electronics?? *Who needs it, just takes a little skill to handle this baby!!

Click to expand...

*Starting that engine reminds me of lighting a kerosen stove.* Lighting the stove seems much safer than starting that weird engine.

I much rather start my diesel engine with a half-second push on a button than fool around with open flames in an engine room.* Thank you.

On the subject of "can houseboats be seaworthy" here are some shots of a houseboat-type boat that was in our marina yesterday. Don't know what make or model it is but I've seen similar boats in the islands over the years. Probably wouldn't want to take it out on Georgia Strait on a 40-knot day but it appears to be capable of handling the typical conditions encountered in this area just fine.

And then there is the M/V DIY approach.....